There was a spirited and information-filled debate on September 26 among the four candidates for council positions in the November 7 election. The debate was organized by the The League of Women Voters of the Morristown Area and co-hosts included the Morris County branch of the NAACP and the Madison Eagle.
The full debate of about 1.5 hours can be viewed on the League’s YouTube channel.
The Madison Eagle provided a great recap of the debate topics and positions of the candidate in their article. Some highlights included:
- Drew Forest: All candidates were adamant about the need to save the land, including John Forte who shared “If we were to lose that forest on our watch, I think it would be a disgrace.” He also called the forest the most important issue in front of the council right now and noted it was not a partisan issue.
- Public safety: Candidates differed on this topic, with Forte, Landrigan, and Honohan praising the Madison Police and Fire departments for their work to keep the community safe and taking a position that the leadership in each department would not hesitate to reach out to the Council if they needed any more support. Bob Landrigan reiterated: “The police department is well supported by the council. We talk to them all the time, we work with them all the time. I was an auxiliary police officer, I can speak from personal experience that the town fully supports the police.”
- Climate action: This was another area where candidates differed in their views. While all agreed that climate change was real, only Forte, Landrigan, and Honohan agreed that it is imperative that Madison take action now to do its part to combat the impacts of climate change. Melissa Honohan said: “Like all politics is local, all action is local, and we really need to take control through the things that we can change,” and that “Starting with something small makes a big statement that also sets an example for the rest of our community.”
- Read more about how democrats lead on critical climate action.
- Finances: All candidates agreed that keeping taxes to a minimum were important and council members Forte, Landrigan had their math right when it comes to the relatively low tax increases in recent years and the importance of preserving the electric utility fund.
- Read more about the sound fiscal practices of the democrats.
Read more on the vision and priorities of our candidates.